Arne Slot shows his genius for Liverpool as Richarlison storms off

Arne Slot will get the chance to open his Liverpool trophy account in the middle of next month after his side comfortably booked their place in the Carabao Cup final.

Liverpool had fallen behind in the first leg to a late Lucas Bergvall goal (controversial after he had avoided a second booking just minutes earlier), but Spurs had been eliminated three of the last five times they had reached a League Cup semi-final second leg with a lead.

Cody Gakpo fired in the corner and scored for Liverpool after a dominant first half and Mohamed Salah, Dominik Szoboszlai and Virgil van Dijk added the second, third and fourth goals in the second half. Here are the five things Liverpool.com spotted as the match unfolded.

Darwin Nunez stands out

Curtis Jones and Darwin Nunez were slightly surprising starters given that Alexis Mac Allister and Luis Diaz were available and on the bench. But the pair played well. Jones kept the pace in the middle of the park, often dropping back to take possession away from his defender; Nunez didn't have many chances, but he worked the Spurs backline and got them out of position.

It was Nunez who won the penalty that Salah superbly converted to put Liverpool ahead in the tie and it was direct play like that that caused Spurs problems all day. Starting Nunez was a surprise but it worked perfectly. It was his best game in a long time and Arne Slot's faith proved great.

Dominik Szoboszlai's best performance in a Liverpool shirt came in the 6-3 win over Spurs earlier this season. He was also very good, while Gakpo was effective and scored his fifth goal of the season in the Carabao Cup. While Arne Slot had made four changes to his starting XI, there was no drop in quality, demonstrating the depth of his squad.

Richarlison silenced

Booing Richarlison was involved in a minor confrontation with Van Dijk early in the game, something that did not seem very well thought out. He was determined to make an impact, but only succeeded in angering the Anfield crowd.

The former Everton man was booed every time he went near the ball after the clash with Van Dijk (which, to be fair, might have happened anyway). In the match, he was kept quiet by Van Dijk and Ibrahima Konaté and, at half-time, he went off injured.

Spurs manager Ange Postecoglou will be ruing his latest injury setback as so many players are sidelined at the moment. Liverpool fans saw it differently, however, and rejoiced in the Brazilian's misfortune. As he hit the turf, his exit from the game was confirmed.

Newcastle United await at Wembley

Newcastle United, who beat Arsenal 4-0 in the second leg of the other semi-final, await in the final. The Magpies, who lost the 2023 final to Manchester United, will provide a stern test at Wembley on March 16.

Liverpool will go into that game as favourites, though. By then, the C-word (quadruple) may already have been talked about. Arne Slot will do his best to avoid it for as long as possible, but the way things are going, it's bound to be said sooner rather than later.

This victory means Liverpool have more games to play, but they have the strength of their squad to cope with them. Slot has ensured his side remain fit across the board, with Trent Alexander-Arnold, who is likely to be out for days rather than weeks, the only absentee. For Liverpool, there is no reason why this form cannot prove sustainable.